SALUS POPULI is an American political and cultural blog

Mar 31 Turkish Moves Against Syria

Turkey's military moves into northwestern Syria complicate the already complex situation. Syria has waged a war against Western backed regime change. The West uses radical Islamic terrorists as a major weapon against Syria. Additionally, the US manipulates the Kurds against Syria. The Kurds are a non-Semitic ethic group with both Muslims and Christians. The Kurds were not given their own country after World War I because of oil politics and other strategic factors. Some of their population was in northern Iraq where the British wanted to control major oil fields. In the present day, their populations are in Syria, Iraq, Turkey, and Iran. Turkey is said to be about 15 percent Kurdish in its eastern zone. In the past, several anti-Turkish Kurdish political and military groups have been active.

In Syria today, the Turks have their objectives directed against the northwestern area which is traditionally Kurdish ethnically. The local Kurds have created a secessionist "Rojava" state concept. The Turks allege that the Kurds in this area support anti-Turkish Kurdish groups inside of Turkey. Thus, the Turks have launched a military operation in northwestern Syria. It is, of course, an illegal invasion. The US has assisted Kurds in this region with military equipment and advice.

The Kurds in this area could certainly reconcile with the Syrian government but this has not yet happened. So they are being exploited further by the West. The French have just stepped into the area with military forces of a special forces type. This is also illegal as they were not invited in by the government of Syria.

The government of Turkey is in the hands of Islamist forces. In the past, before the Islamists seized power through the ballot box, secular politicians of the Attaturk school were in charge. The Islamists rallied the illiterate peasantry in rural areas to their cause thereby gaining substantial support allowing them to take power through the ballot box.

The Turkish Islamists in government have a concept of a greater Turkey. In fact, their geopolitical designs are a reflection of older pan-Turk, Pan-Turanian, geopoltiics concepts reaching as far as into Central Asia. What is today called Turkey was once occupied by the ancient Hittites, a non-Semitic ethnic Indo-European group. The Seljuk Turks who invaded successfully this area originally were from Central Asia. Hence, today's Islamists seek to reassert influence far into Central Asia and even China.

...."In the coming months, Turkey will continue strengthening its political and military influence in the region as well as developing its foreign policy activity. If Ankara succeed in this, the other regional powers will face additional risks caused by the traditional pan-Turkish expansionism, which arises every time Turkey strengthens its military and political power.

Meantime, Turkey has the following goals:

to consolidate gains and to expand the territory under its control in northern and northwestern Syria as well as in northern Iraq. The expansion in northern Iraq may be conducted under the pretext of military efforts against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Sinjar. The military presence in neighboring countries will be justified publicly by the need to create so-called “security zones” to combat “terrorism”;

to strengthen positions on the so-called Cyprus Issue. Northern Cyprus is a self-proclaimed state occupying the northern part of the island and is recognized only by Turkey. Turkey maintains a notable military force there;

to strengthen its influence in the Aegean Sea;

to expand its cultural and political influence into the Turkic states of Central Asia and to restore its clandestine influence on the Turkic regions of Russia....."